Bioware: only we can create gay Star Wars characters

Bioware has taken a hardline stance against the discussion of gay and lesbian …

Dealing with sexuality and religion in video games has become something of a tender subject, but Bioware seems to be the latest company to fumble in its dealings with the topic. It seems that the terms "gay," "lesbian," and even "homosexual" were stricken from acceptable words in the official Bioware forums, and threads talking about creating gay, lesbian, transgendered or bisexual characters were shut down.

The curt response from community manager Sean Dahlberg is telling. "As I have stated before, these are terms that do not exist in Star Wars. Thread closed." That's apparently all the discussion Bioware was willing to have on the issue.

But Bioware fans know that while the terms may not exist in Star Wars, gay and lesbian characters certainly do. It was a pretty open secret that Juhanni, a woman in Knights of the Old Republic, had a female lover. Juhanni would respond to your character romantically if you were a woman. So Bioware can create lesbian characters, but discussions of gay or lesbian characters are verboten? Classy.

The forum was briefly down for maintenance, and now the discussion has been re-opened, although where it will go is anyone's guess. For now, though, it's time to rethink the strategy of simply ignoring and locking any discussion of sexual orientation. Science fiction has long been a way to stretch the boundaries of society—remember that the original Star Trek had a black woman on the bridge of a starship, when such a thing was nearly unthinkable—it's a shame so many in the gaming industry are looking backward in these issues, not forward.

Thanks for everyone who sent this in, and the opinions people have already shared via e-mail.